Great Seal of the State of Idaho tile work at the Idaho State Capitol building on March 23, 2021. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun)
Speaker of the House Scott Bedke announced Friday in a press release that he will appoint former Rep. Thomas Dayley to Idaho’s Citizen Commission for Reapportionment to replace John Simpson, who had to withdraw his appointment because of lobbying rules.
The committee is tasked with redrawing legislative and congressional district maps with updated U.S. Census Bureau data every 10 years.
Legislative and political party leaders are tasked with appointing a total of six members to the committee, sometimes referred to as the Redistricting Commission. Three Republicans and three Democrats will serve on the commission, and it will take at least four votes to approve a map.
“Rep. Dayley is uniquely positioned to serve on the Commission,” Bedke said in the release. “His experience in both state and federal public service will provide an excellent background to create a map that not only complies with existing law but is reasonable and acceptable to the citizens of Idaho.”
Dayley served for 20 years in Washington, D.C., and Idaho as part of the congressional delegation staff, and as an Idaho legislator, he was vice president of the Agricultural Affairs Committee and chairman of the Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee. He most recently served as the state executive director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency.
Dayley was born on a farm in Burley and is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force.
“I appreciate the responsibility of this appointment and understand that it should not be taken lightly,” Dayley said in the release. “We have a difficult task before us, but I look forward to embracing the challenge.”
Other Republican leaders appointed former Sen. Bart Davis and former Rep. Eric Redman to the committee. Leaders of the Idaho Democratic Party have selected Dan Schmidt, Amber Pence and Nels Mitchell as their three appointees to the Idaho Citizen Commission for Reapportionment.
The redistricting process is expected to begin in September.
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